Systems for Enabling Subscriber Monitoring of Telecommunications Network Usage and Service Plans

ABSTRACT

Methods, servers and systems for directly accessing and modifying charging information maintained within a telecommunications operator&#39;s business and operating systems&#39; infrastructure from user equipment. A mobile application server may receive a charging request from a user equipment, identify a relevant charging system based on the received request, send a charging request to the identified charging system for processing, receive a first response message including charging information from the identified charging system, generate a second response message based on the charging information included in the first response message, and send the generated second response message to the user equipment. The received charging request may include various types of information, including information for transferring cost or billing information from a first billing category to a second billing category.

RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No.13/454,896 titled “Systems for Enabling Subscriber Monitoring ofTelecommunications Network Usage and Service Plans” filed on Apr. 24,2012, which claims the benefit of priority to each of U.S. ProvisionalApplication No. 61/479,136, titled “Mobile application server thatEnables Users to Directly Access Telecommunications Operator Services”filed Apr. 26, 2011; U.S. Provisional Application No. 61/537,419, titled“Mobile application server that Enables Users to Directly AccessTelecommunications Operator Services” filed Sep. 21, 2011; and U.S.Provisional Application No. 61/546,818, entitled “Mobile applicationserver that Enables Users to Directly Access Telecommunications OperatorServices” filed Oct. 13, 2011, the entire contents of all of which arehereby incorporated by reference.

BACKGROUND

Wireless and cellular communication technologies have seen dramaticimprovements over the past few years. Cellular service providers nowoffer users a wide array of services, higher usage limits and attractivesubscription plans. Wireless dongles and embedded wireless modem cardsallow network subscribers to use tablet computers, netbooks and laptopsto access wireless Internet protocol (IP) and data services through thecellular networks. Internet-enabled smart phones, tablets and gamingconsoles have become essential personal accessories, connectingsubscribers to friends, work, leisure activities, and entertainment.Subscribers now have more choices and expect to have access to content,data, and communications at any time, in any place, and at a reasonablecost. As service providers continue to offer additional services andservice plans, providing subscribers with effective account managementand monitoring tools is becoming an important and challenging task.

SUMMARY

The various embodiments include methods of accessing live charginginformation in a telecommunications network, including receiving in amobile application server a first charging request from a userequipment, identifying a relevant charging system based on the firstcharging request, generating a second charging request message based onthe first charging request, sending the generated second chargingrequest to the identified charging system for processing, receiving inthe mobile application server a first response message includingcharging information from the identified charging system in response tosending the generated second charging request to the identified chargingsystem, generating in the mobile application server a second responsemessage based on the charging information included in the first responsemessage, and sending from the mobile application server the generatedsecond response message to the user equipment. In an embodiment,receiving a first charging request from a user equipment may includereceiving a charging request that may include at least one of charginginformation associated with a specific network subscriber, charginginformation associated with a subscriber defined counter, charginginformation associated with a specific service for the specific networksubscriber, charging information associated with non-telecommunicationsrelated service, and charging information associated with specificdevices belonging to the specific network subscriber. In a furtherembodiment, sending the generated second charging request to theidentified charging system for processing may include sending a chargingrequest that instructs the identified charging system to modify charginginformation.

In a further embodiment, the method may include setting a thresholdbased on information included in the first charging request. In afurther embodiment, the method may include sending a notification to theuser equipment when the set threshold is breached. In a furtherembodiment, identifying a relevant charging system based on the firstcharging request may include receiving information from subscriberrepository, determining a charging system type based on the informationreceived from subscriber repository, and identifying the relevantcharging system based on the determined charging system type. In afurther embodiment, identifying a relevant charging system based on thefirst charging request may include identifying one of an online chargingsystem (OCS) and an offline charging system (OFCS).

In a further embodiment, the method may include predicting futurecharging spending balances and rates based on the charging informationincluded in the first response message. In a further embodiment,receiving a first charging request from a user equipment may includereceiving a charging request that may include information for obtainingnetwork connectivity without having a prior commercial relationship. Ina further embodiment, receiving a first charging request from a userequipment may include receiving a charging request that may includeloyalty information. In a further embodiment, receiving a first chargingrequest from a user equipment may include receiving a charging requestthat may include information for transferring cost information from afirst billing category to a second billing category.

Further embodiments may include a server configured withserver-executable instructions to perform various operationscorresponding to the methods discussed above.

Further embodiments may include a computing device having a processorconfigured with processor-executable instructions to perform variousoperations corresponding to the methods discussed above.

Further embodiments may include a computing device that may includevarious means for performing functions corresponding to the methodoperations discussed above.

Further embodiments may include a non-transitory processor-readablestorage medium having stored thereon processor-executable instructionsconfigured to cause a processor to perform various operationscorresponding to the method operations discussed above.

Further embodiments may include a system having a computing device thatmay include a transceiver, a memory, and a device processor coupled tothe memory and transceiver, and a communications server having a servertransceiver, a server memory and a server processor coupled to theserver memory, in which the server and/or device processors areconfigured with processor executable instructions to perform variousoperations corresponding to the methods discussed above.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated herein and constitutepart of this specification, illustrate exemplary aspects of theinvention, and, together with the general description given above andthe detailed description given below, serve to explain features of theinvention.

FIG. 1 is a communication system block diagram illustrating networkcomponents of a communication system having an evolved packet core (EPC)architecture suitable for use in the various embodiments.

FIG. 2 is a communication system block diagram illustrating networkcomponents of an example communication-system having a policy andcharging control (PCC) network in accordance with the variousembodiments.

FIG. 3 is a network architectural diagram illustrating logicalcomponents and information flows in an example policy and chargingcontrol network.

FIG. 4 is a network architectural diagram illustrating logicalcomponents and communication protocols in an example policy and chargingcontrol network.

FIG. 5 is a system block diagram illustrating logical components andinformation flows in a communication system suitable for implementingthe various embodiments.

FIG. 6 is a network architectural diagram illustrating logicalcomponents, information flows and interfaces in a communication systemincluding both stateless and stateful interfaces in accordance with anembodiment.

FIG. 7 is a network architectural diagram illustrating logicalcomponents, information flows and interfaces in an embodimentcommunication system in which communications between mobile applicationservers and policy and charging components are facilitated by a dynamiccontext router (DCR).

FIG. 8 is a message flow diagram illustrating message flows in acommunication system that includes a mobile application server inaccordance with various embodiments.

FIGS. 9-28 are illustrations of user equipment devices displaying userinteraction systems configured to provide subscribers with access todetailed usage, charging, policy, service, subscription and/or accountinformation in accordance with various embodiments.

FIG. 29 is a system block diagram of a user equipment device in the formof a phone/cell phone suitable for use with various embodiments.

FIG. 30 is a system block diagram of a server suitable for use with anembodiment.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The various embodiments will be described in detail with reference tothe accompanying drawings. Wherever possible, the same reference numberswill be used throughout the drawings to refer to the same or like parts.References made to particular examples and implementations are forillustrative purposes, and are not intended to limit the scope of theinvention or the claims.

The word “exemplary” is used herein to mean “serving as an example,instance, or illustration.” Any implementation described herein as“exemplary” is not necessarily to be construed as preferred oradvantageous over other implementations.

The terms “mobile device,” “wireless device” and “user equipment” (UE)may be used interchangeably and refer to any one of various cellulartelephones, smart-phones (e.g., iPhone®), personal data assistants(PDA's), palm-top computers, tablet computers (e.g., iPad®), laptopcomputers, wireless electronic mail receivers (e.g., Blackberry®), VoIPphones, wire-line devices, devices implementing Machine-to-Machine (M2M)technologies, multimedia/Internet enabled cellular telephones, IPenabled televisions, IP enabled entertainment systems, and similarelectronic devices that include a programmable processor and are capableof sending and receiving wireless or wireline communication signals. Ina preferred embodiment, the wireless device is a cellular handhelddevice (e.g., a mobile device), which may communicate via a cellulartelephone communications network.

The phrases “Diameter reference points,” “Diameter applications,” and“Diameter interfaces” may be used interchangeably and refer to specificimplementations of the Diameter protocol. However, when possible, thephrase “Diameter application” is used to describe an extension of theDiameter base protocol (which is built on top of the Diameter baseprotocol) and the phrase “Diameter reference point” is used to describean interface between network components that employ the Diameterprotocol to realize communications (i.e., network components realizecommunications over a reference point). Diameter applications may usethe same name as Diameter reference points (e.g., Gx reference point andGx Diameter application), the distinction being that at each end of thereference point there may be a client node and a server node.

A number of different cellular and mobile communication services andstandards are available or contemplated in the future, all of which mayimplement and benefit from the various embodiments. Such services andstandards include third generation partnership project (3GPP), long termevolution (LTE) systems, third generation wireless mobile communicationtechnology (3G), fourth generation wireless mobile communicationtechnology (4G), global system for mobile communications (GSM),universal mobile telecommunications system (UMTS), 3GSM, general packetradio service (GPRS), code division multiple access (CDMA) systems(e.g., cdmaOne, CDMA2000™), enhanced data rates for GSM evolution(EDGE), advanced mobile phone system (AMPS), digital AMPS (IS-136/TDMA),evolution-data optimized (EV-DO), digital enhanced cordlesstelecommunications (DECT), Worldwide Interoperability for MicrowaveAccess (WiMAX), wireless local area network (WLAN), Wi-Fi ProtectedAccess I & II (WPA, WPA2), and integrated digital enhanced network(iden). Each of these technologies involves, for example, thetransmission and reception of signaling and content messages. It shouldbe understood that any references to terminology and/or technicaldetails related to an individual standard or technology are forillustrative purposes only, and are not intended to limit the scope ofthe claims to a particular communication system or technology, unlessspecifically recited in the claim language.

In recent years, telecommunication service providers have begun offeringmany new services, and user equipment devices (e.g., cellular phones,smartphones, tablets, laptop computers, etc.) have become faster andmore feature-rich than ever. For example, smartphones now haveimpressive processing capabilities, high speed communication circuitry(e.g., radios, modems, etc.), and are capable of executing powerfulnetwork-intensive applications. Smartphone applications that involvenetwork usage include, for example, productivity applications (e.g.,calendars, video conferencing, etc.), photo and video applications(YouTube®, Netflix®, etc.), social media applications (e.g., Facebook®,etc.), and other similar applications that generate and/or consume largeamounts of information exchanged over telecommunications and/or IPnetworks. Likewise, traditional telephony systems have improved andconverged with IP/data systems, resulting in lower wireless datasubscription costs and improved network speeds. These advances haveresulted in a dramatic increase in the volume of information beingcommunicated on wireless networks, and are driving the ever-increasingcustomer demand for wireless communications.

To meet customer demands and manage increases in network traffic,telecommunication service providers now offer their customers a widearray of subscription plans, including pre-paid plans, flat-rate plans,actual usage plans, unlimited usage plans, post-paid plans,usage-limited plans, multi-user plans, and various other plans based onthe amount of bandwidth, voice, text, data, and/or other services usedper billing period. These plans enable service providers to offer theircustomers feature combinations that meet their customers' usage needs,while maximizing revenue and/or reducing network traffic. However, theproliferation of such subscription plans has increased the complexity ofmanaging subscriber accounts, particularly from the subscriber'sperspective. Subscribers are often confused about the types or amountsof services they may consume and/or the costs associated with consumingcertain services. As a result, customers may experience “bill shock”when charges for services used during a month exceed their costexpectations.

To help customers manage the complexity associated with the wide varietyof available subscriber services and service plans, telecommunicationsoperators have begun to provide subscribers with web-based access totheir accounts. However, telecommunications operators often do not havefull access to all of the components in the network and, as a result,cannot provide subscribers with access to certain network resources(e.g., online charging systems discussed below) or provide them withcomplete information regarding certain details of their usage orsubscription plans (e.g., details relating to charging, metering,balance, policy, etc.). Also, existing solutions only provide customerswith access to usage information (e.g., via a website that displays dataconsumption in MBs for the current month) and do not allow customers toset fine grain controls, such as real time usage limits.

The various embodiments provide subscribers with a more complete accessto network resources and subscription plan information, enablingsubscribers to more fully monitor and control data communication costsand services on their user equipment devices. The various embodimentsinclude methods, devices, and systems that enable customers to use theiruser equipment devices to directly access and modify informationmaintained within a telecommunications network operator's business andoperating systems infrastructure. Various embodiments enable subscribersto monitor on the user equipment their actual service usage, comparingtheir usage against one or more quotas, simplifying the management ofsubscriber accounts. Various embodiments enable subscribers to set finegrain controls (e.g., usage limits) that operate independently from thetelecommunication service providers. Various embodiments enablesubscribers to analyze and compare their past and predicted servicesusage with available subscription plans, and identify other subscriptionplans that are likely to be more cost effective.

The various embodiments may be implemented within a variety oftelecommunication systems, an example of which is illustrated in FIG. 1.Wireless devices 102 may be configured to send and receive voice, data,and control signals to and from a service network 36 (and ultimately theInternet) using a variety of communication systems/technologies (e.g.,GPRS, UMTS, LTE, cdmaOne, CDMA2000™). In the example illustrated in FIG.1, general packet radio service (GPRS) data transmitted from a wirelessdevice 102 is received by a base transceiver station (BTS) 12 and sentto a base station controller (BSC) and/or packet control unit (PCU)component (BSC/PCU) 18. Code division multiple access (CDMA) datatransmitted from a wireless device 102 is received by a base transceiverstation 12 and sent to a base station controller (BSC) and/or pointcoordination function (PCF) component (BSC/PCF) 22. Universal mobiletelecommunications system (UMTS) data transmitted from a wireless device102 is received by a NodeB 14 and sent to a radio network controller(RNC) 20. Long term evolution (LTE) data transmitted from a wirelessdevice 102 is received by an eNodeB 16 and sent directly to a servinggateway (SGW) 28 located within the EPC 40.

The BSC/PCU 18, RNC 20 and BSC/PCF 22 components process the GPRS, UMTSand CDMS data, respectively, and send the processed data to a nodewithin the EPC 40. More specifically, the BSC/PCU 18 and RNC 20 unitssend the processed data to a serving GPRS support node (SGSN) 24, andthe BSC/PCF 22 sends the processed data to a packet data serving node(PDSN) and/or high rate packet data serving gateway (HSGW) component(PDSN/HSGW) 30. The PDSN/HSGW 30 may act as a connection point betweenthe radio access network and the IP based PCEF/PGW 32. The SGSN 24 isresponsible for routing the data within a particular geographicalservice area and may send signaling (control plane) information (e.g.,information pertaining to communication setup, security, authentication,etc.) to a mobility management entity (MME) 26. The MME may requestsubscriber and subscription information from a home subscriber server(HSS) 42, perform various administrative tasks (e.g., subscriberauthentication, enforcement of roaming restrictions, etc.), select a SGW28, and send administrative and/or authorization information to the SGSN24.

Upon receiving the authorization information from the MME 26 (e.g., anauthentication complete indication, an identifier of a selected SGW,etc.), the SGSN 24 sends the GPRS/UMTS data to a selected SGW 28. TheSGW 28 stores information about the data (e.g., parameters of the IPbearer service, network internal routing information, etc.) and forwardsuser data packets to a policy control enforcement function (PCEF) and/orpacket data network gateway (PGW) 32. The PCEF/PGW 32 sends signalinginformation (control plane) to a policy control rules function (PCRF)34. The PCRF 34 accesses subscriber databases, creates a set of policyrules and performs other specialized functions (e.g., interacts withonline/offline charging systems, application functions, etc.) and sendsthe intelligent policy rules to the PCEF/PGW 32 for enforcement. ThePCEF/PGW 32 implements the policy rules to control the bandwidth, thequality of service (QoS), the characteristics of the data, and theservices being communicated between the service network 36 and the endusers (e.g., network subscribers).

FIG. 2 illustrates various logical components in an examplecommunication system 100 suitable for implementing the variousembodiments. Wireless devices 102 may be configured to communicate via acellular telephone network, a radio access network (e.g., UTRAN, RAN,etc.), WiFi network, WiMAX network, and/or other well known technologies(e.g., GPRS, UMTS, LTE, cdmaOne, CDMA2000™). FIG. 2 illustrates thatwireless devices 102 may be configured to transmit and receive voice,data, and control signals to and from a base station (e.g., basetransceiver station, NodeB, eNodeB, etc.) 104. The base station may becoupled to a controller (e.g., cellular base station, radio networkcontroller, service gateway, etc.) operable to communicate the voice,data, and control signals between mobile devices and to other networkdestinations. In the illustrated example of FIG. 2, the base station 104communicates with an access gateway 110, which serves as the primarypoint of entry and exit of wireless device traffic and connects thewireless devices 102 to their immediate service provider and/or packetdata networks (PDNs). The access gateway 110 may include one or more ofa controller, a gateway, a serving gateway (SGW), a packet data networkgateway (PGW), an evolved packet data gateway (ePDG), a packet dataserving node (PDSN), a serving general packet radio service support node(SGSN), or any combination of the features/functions provided thereof.Since these components are well known, certain details have been omittedin order to focus the descriptions on the most relevant features.

The access gateway 110 forwards the voice, data, and control signals toother network components as user data packets, provides connectivity toexternal packet data networks, manages and stores contexts (e.g. networkinternal routing information, etc.), and acts as an anchor betweendifferent technologies (e.g., 3GPP and non-3GPP systems). The accessgateway 110 may coordinate the transmission and reception of data to andfrom the Internet 107, as well as the transmission and reception ofvoice, data, and control information to and from an external servicenetwork 130 connected to the Internet 107, to other base stations 104and to wireless devices 102. The access gateway 110 may also routecontrol information to a policy and charging control (PCC) network 112,which may be a part of an implementation of an evolved packet core(EPC)/long term evolution (LTE) architecture. In the variousembodiments, the access gateway 110 may be a part of the policy andcharging control network 112, and the functions described may beimplemented in a single computing device or in many computing devicescoupled in a local area network or wide area network using any of theabove mentioned telecommunication technologies (e.g., 3G, 4G, GPRS,UMTS, LTE, etc.).

Returning to FIG. 2, as mentioned above, the access gateway 110 routescontrol/signaling information (e.g., call setup, security,authentication, charging, enforcement of policy rules, etc.) to thepolicy and charging control (PCC) network 112, which is an example of atelecommunications signaling network. The PCC network 112 providespolicy and service control rules, controls charging functionalities, andprovides quality of service (QoS) authorizations. The PCC network 112may include one or more components for a policy and charging enforcementfunction (PCEF) 114, a policy charging rules function (PCRF) 116, anoff-line charging system (OFCS) 118, an on-line charging system (OCS)120, a subscriber profile repository (SPR) 122, and an applicationfunction (AF) 124.

Components in the PCC network 112 (e.g., PCEF, PCRF, OFCS, OCS, SPR, AF)may communicate using a standardized protocol, such as the Diameterprotocol, remote authentication dial in user service (RADIUS) protocol,session initiation protocol (SIP), or any other telecommunicationsnetwork protocol. To focus the discussion on the relevant features andfunctionalities, the various embodiments are described with reference tothe Diameter protocol. However, it is to be understood that the variousembodiments are protocol agnostic and should not be limited to theDiameter protocol unless expressly recited in the claims.

FIG. 3 is an architectural diagram illustrating communications betweenthe various logical components in a PCC network 112. The PCC network 112may include a policy and charging enforcement function (PCEF) component114 that serves as the primary enforcement point, gateway, and a routingmechanism between the Internet and the radio infrastructure/radio accessnetwork. As discussed above, the PCEF component 114 may be a part of, orperform operations typically associated with, a gateway GPRS supportnode (GGSN), a packet data network gateway (PGW), or other similarcomponents. Detailed information about policy and charging enforcementfunction operations may be found in “3rd Generation Partnership ProjectTechnical Specification Group Services and System Aspects, Policy andCharging Control Architecture,” TS 23.203 (updated Mar. 9, 2012), theentire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.

The PCEF 114 may receive signaling messages from a gateway (e.g., AccessGateway 110 illustrated in FIG. 2), and use information contained withinthe signaling messages to select an optimal route and a quality ofservice (QoS) for a particular type of service, as well as to enforcevarious policies on the services. The enforcement of policies mayinclude querying, coordinating, removing, revoking, and/or adjustingvarious resources (e.g., network resources, subscriber resources, etc.)based on a set of policy rules.

The PCEF 114 enforces policies by implementing a set of policy rules.Each policy rule may govern the services, QoS, and/or bandwidth that areto be made available to a particular subscriber. The policy rules mayalso govern the times when certain services are made accessible to thesubscriber (e.g. weekdays from 9 AM to 5 PM, etc.) and how long thesubscriber may access those services (e.g., 15 minutes at a time, atotal of two hours, etc.)

The PCRF 116 is responsible for identifying the appropriate policy rulesfor a given communication session of a given subscriber or terminaldevice, and sending the identified policy rules to the PCEF 114 forenforcement. Specifically, the PCRF 116 is responsible for generating,compiling, and selecting a set of business and technology rules thatdefine the policies that are to be enforced for particular callsessions. The PCRF 116 may make rule decisions on a per-subscriber,per-session and/or per-service basis. For example, the PCRF 116 may usesubscriber information (e.g., subscriber's city of residence), thecurrent usage parameters (e.g., day of week, time of day, peak hours,etc.), the subscriber's service level (e.g., Gold, Bronze, etc.), andother information related to the subscriber, session, or service togenerate and/or select one or more rules or a rule group. The selectedrules or rule group may be communicated to the PCEF 114 (e.g., via theGx interface) as a profile that defines the policies to be enforced. ThePCRF 116 may include one or more databases for storing default rules,maintaining generated rules, and keeping track of session information.

The PCRF 116 may request subscriber profile information from thesubscriber profile repository (SPR) 122, which maintains subscriberprofiles (e.g., customer IDs, preferences, subscription levels,balances, etc.) in one or more data stores.

An application function (AF) 124 represents a node involved in thedelivery of an application or service (e.g., voice-over-IP, voice andvideo call, video-on-demand, etc.) that may be used by a subscriber orthat may have dealings with the subscriber. The AF 124 may communicatewith the PCRF 116 to ensure that the generated rules are sufficient toprovide subscribers with a quality of service (QoS) commensurate withthe requirements of their requested services/flows. For example, if acurrent policy is being enforced based on rules for receiving aparticular service (e.g., a voice-over-IP call) and the subscriberrequests an additional amount of a given service, or another service(e.g., a voice and video call), the application function 124 componentmay push a new set of rules to the PCRF 116 reflecting the servicechanges (e.g., QoS, etc.) required for the additional services. Theapplication function may also store information unique to eachsubscriber, service, session, and/or application.

In addition to receiving rules from the PCRF 116, the PCEF 114 componentmay also communicate with an on-line charging system (OCS) 120 and anoffline charging system (OFCS) 118 to identify the policies that are tobe enforced and/or to ensure proper charging. For example, the PCEF 114may periodically inform the OFCS 118 of the amount of wireless data thatis being used by a subscriber. The OFCS 118 may use this information tomonitor the aggregate amount of data/service used by each subscriber,and to generate a record that may be collected, processed, formatted,correlated, aggregated, filtered, and/or sent to an external billingsystem for processing into a billing statement. In order to monitor thedata/service usage of each subscriber, the OFCS 118 may storeinformation related to each subscriber, session, and/or service.

The PCEF 114 may also periodically inform the OCS 120 of servicesrequested by a subscriber. The OCS 120 is generally responsible fordetermining if the subscriber has sufficient funds/credits/access unitsto receive a requested service. In various embodiments, the OCS 120 mayalso perform other operations related to charging, balance management,and real time rating. The OCS 120 may grant or deny access based on theamount of fund/credits/access units available. In an embodiment, the OCS120 may manage pre-pay services. In an embodiment, the OCS 120 maymanage a combination of pre-pay and post-pay services in which some (ora portion) of the services require a pre-paid balance and some (or aportion) of the services may be billed to the client. In any case, thePCEF 114 may issue requests for service authorization to the OCS 120,and the OCS 120 may respond with a message granting or denyingauthorization. As part of its operations, the OCS 120 may storeinformation unique to each subscriber, session, and/or service.

FIG. 4 is an architectural diagram illustrating the use of Diameterapplications/interfaces for communications between the various logicalcomponents in an example policy and charging control (PCC) network 400.As mentioned above, the logical components may communicate using aprotocol, such as RADIUS, SIP or Diameter. Diameter is a protocolstandardized by the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) and adoptedby the Third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP). Diameter is anextensible protocol that provides a general mechanism for two or morenodes in a network to communicate signaling information (e.g.,communications involving call setup, security, authentication, charging,enforcement of policy rules). Diameter also includes numerous accesscontrol features that make it highly useful in authentication,authorization, and accounting (AAA) systems, as well as in the policyand charging control network 112. Detailed information about theDiameter protocol may be found in “Network Working Group Request forComments: 3588; Diameter Base Protocol,” the entire contents of whichare hereby incorporated by reference for purposes of disclosing theprotocol details.

The Diameter protocol provides a base protocol (i.e., “Diameter baseprotocol”) and a framework for defining custom extensions (i.e.,“Diameter applications”) to the base protocol. The base protocol definesa set of generic messages useful for low-level operations (e.g.,establishing connectivity, hand-shaking, etc.) and the framework allowsapplication-developers to develop Diameter applications (i.e.,extensions of the Diameter base protocol) that define custom messagesfor more specialized operations. By extending the Diameter baseprotocol, Diameter applications may use all of the features provided bythe Diameter base protocol, as well as any custom protocol extensionsthey define. For example, a Diameter application may use Diameter baseprotocol components to define exactly how messages are to becommunicated and define custom extensions that describe the content ofthe messages being communicated.

As mentioned above, logical components (e.g., PCEF 114, PCRF 116, AF124, SPR 122, OCS 120, OFCS 118) in the PCC network 400 may use theDiameter protocol to communicate with each other. Components that usethe Diameter protocol may support various standardized Diameterapplications (e.g., Gx, Gy, Gz, Rx, Sy, etc.) that are especially wellsuited for their specialized operations.

The logical components (e.g., PCEF 114, PCRF 116, AF 124, SPR 122, OCS120, OFCS 118) in the PCC network 400 may also communicate withresources outside of the provider network. For example, the PCRF 116 ina home provider network may need to communicate with an external PCRF410 in another provider network, such as while a subscriber's cell phoneroams in the other provider's network. The external PCRF 410 maycommunicate with the appropriate logical components (e.g., PCRF 116, OCS120, etc.) in the home provider network to ensure proper charging, QoS,etc. In the illustrated example, the external PCRF 410 communicates withPCRF 116 through the S9 interface.

To focus the discussion on the relevant features, various logicalcomponents (e.g., PCEF, PCRF, AF, SPR, OFCS, OCS, etc.) are described asusing specific Diameter protocols. However, it should be understood thatany protocol may be used (e.g., RADIUS, SIP, etc.) and nothing in theclaims should be limited to a particular interface, protocol orapplication, unless expressly recited in the claims.

One of the successes of modern user equipment, such as smart phones, isrelated to the ease and convenience with which applications may bedownloaded from the application stores. Accordingly, telecommunicationsoperators have endeavored to create applications that have enabled themto offer a range of services to their customers to access from theiruser equipment. These telecommunications applications have typicallybeen created using a three tier approach in which the telecommunicationsnetwork (e.g., networks illustrated in FIG. 1 or FIG. 2) is organizedinto a client-side tier, a middle tier, and a back-end infrastructuretier. The client-side tier may include software that runs on the userequipment, the back-end infrastructure tier may include computer systemsthat reside in a telecommunications operator's infrastructure andprovide operator services (e.g., identity and authorization management,policy management, charging management, etc.), and the middle tier mayinclude software (e.g., an application server on the Internet) thatlinks the client and infrastructure tiers.

While the three tier approach has certain benefits, there are numerousdifficulties associated with integrating a telecommunications operator'sback-end infrastructure with applications that are designed to run onuser equipment. For instance, telecommunications operators do not havefull access to all of the components in the network, and cannot providesubscribers with access to certain network resources (e.g., onlinecharging system 120 illustrated in FIG. 3) or provide them with completeinformation regarding certain details of their usage or subscriptionplans (e.g., details relating to charging, metering, balance, policy,etc). Also, existing solutions only provide subscribers with access tousage information (e.g., via a website that displays data consumption inMBs for the current month) and do not allow the subscriber to set finegrain controls (real time usage limits).

The various embodiments provide subscribers with a more complete accessto network resources and subscription plan information, enablingsubscribers to more fully monitor and control data communication costsand services on their user equipment. Various embodiments include mobileapplication server (MAS) systems, which may be architecturally similarto (and compatible with) the middle tier in the three tier approach usedto deploy other applications for telecommunication operators. Examplesof applications that could harness the various embodiments include:services provided by third party telecommunications operators (e.g.,roaming services, transit services, etc.), services provided by thirdparty partners (e.g., mobile-commerce applications, payment services,etc.), services provided by applications that reside within a cloudarchitecture, and Web 2.0 style “over the top” applications and services(e.g., YouTube®, video downloads, Internet widgets) that run “on top” ofthe services being provisioned directly by the service provider.

FIG. 5 illustrates logical components and information flows in acommunication system 500 suitable for implementing the variousembodiments. The communication system 500 may include a plurality ofuser equipment 502, internal systems 504, and a web application server506. The internal systems 504 may include all of the communicationsnetworks, resources, components, and systems that are logically betweenthe user equipment 502 and the web application server 506. In theexample illustrated in FIG. 5, the internal systems 504 may include amobile application server (MAS) 508, a generic presentation layer enginecomponent 510, a single sign on (SSO) system component 526, an AAAsystem component 528, a policy management system component 530, and acharging system component 532. In various embodiments, the presentationlayer engine 510 may be a component of the mobile application server508, or may be external to the mobile application server 508. In variousembodiments, the internal systems 504 may further include a billingsystem, an external charging system, a profile manager system, and/orother components of the telecommunications service provider network.

The user equipment 502 may be terminal equipment owned and operated by asubscriber. Examples of user equipment 502 include mobile phones, smartphones (e.g., iPhones®), tablet devices (e.g., iPads®), smarttelevisions, smart appliances, and other similar electronic devices thatcommunicate via a telecommunication network. Each user equipment 502unit may include a software client application that enables interactionbetween a subscriber and the user equipment 502 and the mobileapplication server 508. The software client may also implement businessfunctionality and/or may be configured to perform Web 2.0 style mashups.The software client may be designed specifically for a particular typeof user equipment 502.

The web application server 506 may be a third party web server thatprovides additional business logic and/or presentation layerfunctionality for subscribers.

The presentation layer engine 510 may be configured to expose a publicinterface of the mobile application server 508 to the user equipment 502and/or web application server 506. The presentation layer engine 510 maybe configured to apply business logic and/or perform data manipulationoperations on the information received from the mobile applicationserver 508, user equipment 502, or web application server 506, and/or topresent information (e.g., through a firewall and/or network addresstranslation unit) to the user equipment 502 or web application server506 in a format that is readily usable by the user equipment 502 and/orthe web application server 506. In an embodiment, the presentation layerengine 510 may be configured to tailor the information to a particulartype of client (e.g., Type 1, Type 2, etc.), as opposed to a particularsubscriber. For example, the presentation layer engine 510 may beconfigured to include additional navigational meta-information intomessages sent to smart televisions since their user-interfaces may bemore limited, such as to only permitting “up”, “down”, “left”, “right”,and “ok” user interface buttons, compared to the multi-touch userinterface available on most smartphones and tablet devices.

The presentation layer engine 510 may support plug-ins that extend thepresentation layer functionality with client device type-specificfunctionality, which may be added at run-time without shutting down thesystem. In the example illustrated in FIG. 5, the presentation layerengine 510 includes two device type extensions 512 a, 512 b. Each devicetype extension component 512 a, 512 b may be a plug-in that extends thefunctionality of the presentation layer engine 510 to includefunctionality specific to a particular type of user equipment. That is,the device type extension 512 a may extend the functionality of thepresentation layer engine 510 to support a first type of device (i.e.,type 1 devices), and the device type extension component 512 b mayextend the functionality of the presentation layer engine 510 to supporta second type of device (i.e., type 2 devices).

The mobile application server (“MAS” in FIG. 5) 508 may include (orcommunicate with) a subscriber management component 514, a userequipment policy enforcement engine 516, an analytical engine component518, a decision core engine component 520, a caching engine 522, anotification engine 524, and other similar components. The mobileapplication server 508 may be software that operates within thetelecommunications operator's network and/or a cloud computingenvironment. The mobile application server 508 may be implemented in astandalone server, or may be implemented as part of another functionalcomponent, such as in a policy controller. In an embodiment, the mobileapplication server 508 may be implemented as part of a policy andcharging enforcement function component (e.g., PCEF 114 illustrated inFIG. 3 and FIG. 4). In various embodiments, the mobile applicationserver 508 may be a subscriber engagement engine (SEE) or a customerinteraction gateway (CIG). The mobile application server 508 may bestateless and/or otherwise configured to facilitate horizontalscalability. In an embodiment, the mobile application server 508 may bedeployed in a cloud computing environment.

The mobile application server 508 may configured to expose a publicinterface (e.g., RESTful, SOAP, etc.) to which clients (e.g., devicespecific software applications installed on user equipment) may connectand communicate information. The mobile application server 508 mayexpose internal interfaces for establishing connections to othercomponents, such as policy management systems (e.g., PCRF 116), chargingsystems (e.g., OCS 120, OFCS 118), and subscriber repositories (e.g.,SPR 122). In various embodiments, the mobile application server 508 mayexpose a Gx interface for communicating with a policy charging rulesfunction (e.g., PCRF 116), a Gy interface for communicating with anonline charging system (e.g., OCS 120), a Gz interface for communicatingwith an offline charging system (e.g., OFCS 118), and/or an Sp interfacefor communicating with a subscriber repository (e.g., SPR 122).

As mentioned above, the mobile application server 508 may include asubscriber management component 514 or software module. The subscribermanagement component 514 may be configured to manage and maintaininformation relating to the subscribers associated with the userequipment 502, such as device specific settings. Additionally, thesubscriber management component 514 may be configured to retrieveinformation from other components within the telecommunicationsoperator's network.

The mobile application server 508 may include a user equipment policyenforcement engine 516 software module configured to convert, orcompile, high-level policy requirements into low-level policy rules. Inan embodiment, the user equipment policy enforcement engine 516 may beconfigured to generate the low-level policy rules specific to aparticular type of user equipment (e.g., Type 1, Type 2, etc.). Thelow-level policy rules may be sent to the user equipment 502 forenforcement by the software client.

The mobile application server 508 may include an analytics engine 518software module configured to record and provide basic logging andstatistical information relating to user equipment 502 accessing themobile application server 508. Additionally, the analytics engine 518may be configured to use logging information in conjunction withadditional contextual information obtained from other components withinthe telecommunications operator's network to generate semantically awareinformation.

The mobile application server 508 may include a decision core engine 520software module configured to receive multiple inputs from multiplesources and produce a unified output. The inputs may contain stimuliinformation from the user equipment 502 as well as contextualinformation obtained from other components within the telecommunicationsoperator's network (e.g., user equipment policy enforcement engine 516,etc.). The decision core engine 520 may generate the output to containresulting data and/or calls to other functional components (e.g., thenotification engine 524).

The mobile application server 508 may include a caching engine 522 orsoftware module configured to cache information within the mobileapplication server 508. The cached information may relate to policyinformation, charging information, or any other subscriber or systeminformation. The caching engine 522 may use customized cachingalgorithms that are application aware, so that it may preemptively cachedata based on the subscribers' past actions, their probable futureactions, and any other relevant contextual information. For example, inan embodiment, the caching engine 522 may be configured to use differentcaching algorithms for caching a subscriber's balance based on whetherthe subscriber's active charging is event based charging or sessionbased charging. The caching engine 522 may also be configured to usetraditional generic caching techniques in addition to the techniquesdiscussed above.

The mobile application server 508 may include a notification engine 524or software module configured to generate and send messages to the userequipment 502 for rendering in a device specific manner. The messagesmay be generated so that they may be rendered in the user equipment 502using either a built-in operating system of the user equipment 502 orthe software client running on the user equipment 502. The notificationengine 524 may be configured to select a notification mechanism on acase-by-case basis, depending on the subscribers' preferences and theiruser equipment 502 types. The notification engine 524 may be configuredto generate messages so they are specifically tailored to be presentedon the subscriber's user equipment type (e.g., Type 1, Type 2, etc.).The notification engine 524 may be configured to generate the messagesso that they are consistent with the location of the subscriber (e.g.,written in a particular language and using relevant currency andcurrency formats, etc.).

In an embodiment, the notification engine 524 may be configured toimplement notification policies, such as policies relating to thefrequency at which notifications are to be sent (e.g., once per day,once per week, etc.), policies set by telecommunications operators,policies set by subscribers, etc. In various embodiments, the policiesfor sending notifications implemented by the notification engine 524 maybe mandatory policies (e.g., required for the system), user-definablepolicies, and/or subscriber configurable policies. In an embodiment, thenotification engine 524 may receive policies from a policy managementsystem 530.

In an embodiment, the notification engine 524 may be configured toretrieve subscriber information from a subscriber repository. If asubscriber has multiple user equipment devices 502, the notificationengine 524 may send notifications to the most appropriate device (whichmay be determined based on information retrieved from the subscriberrepository) rather than spamming all of the subscriber's devices.

In an embodiment, the notification engine 524 may be configured toexpose a public application programming interface (API) to componentsoutside of the mobile application server 508. The system 500 may beconfigured such that there is a charge associated with the use of thepublic API by third parties. The system 500 may also be configured suchthat policies set by subscribers dictate which third parties may use thepublic APIs to communicate with specific user equipment 502.

Notifications sent by the notification engine 524 may include policyinformation, charging information, or any information relating to thesubscriber (e.g., thresholds, balances, roaming charges, etc.). In anembodiment, the notification engine 524 may communicate with externalresources to receive information relevant to the notifications. In anembodiment, the notification engine 524 may be part of a policy chargingcontrol system (e.g., PCC system illustrated in FIGS. 3 and 4).

The mobile application server 508 may communicate with a single sign on(SSO) system component 526, an AAA system component 528, a policymanagement system component 530, a charging system component 532, andother similar systems, such as a billing system, an external chargingsystem, a profile manager system, and/or other components of thetelecommunications service provider network.

The mobile application server 508 may communicate with the single signon (SSO) system component 526 to authenticate subscribers and/or userequipment 502. The single sign on (SSO) system component 526 may beconfigured to enable the subscribers associated with the user equipment502 to automatically identify and authenticate themselves to third partyweb applications. The single sign on server may also be configured toenable each subscriber to have multiple different identities, and toautomatically select the correct identity based on the subscriber'spreferences.

The mobile application server 508 may communicate with the AAA systemcomponent 528 to identify and authenticate user equipment 502, as wellas to provide any authorization and access control managementfunctionally required by the communications network or the system 500.

The mobile application server 508 may communicate with the policymanagement system component 530 to determine policies regarding usage ofthe telecommunications operator's network. These policies may bemandated by the telecommunications operator, or they may be selected andconfigured by the subscribers (e.g., via the client software on the userequipment 502). In an embodiment, communications between the policymanagement system component 530 and the mobile application server 508may be achieved via the Gx interface. In the preferred embodiment of a3G network, the policy management system component 530 may be a policyand charging rules function (PCRF) component.

The mobile application server 508 may communicate with the chargingsystem component 532 to access and/or modify balance information. Forexample, the charging system component 532 may be invoked by the mobileapplication server 508 (e.g., via client software on the user equipment502) in order to retrieve and/or modify subscribers' balances, such asto increment a subscriber's balance due to the subscriber havingpurchased more credit, or to decrement a subscriber's balance due to thesubscriber's purchase of an additional service. In an embodiment,communications between the charging system component 532 and the mobileapplication server 508 may be achieved via the Gy interface. In theembodiment of a 3G network, the charging system may be an onlinecharging system (OCS).

In an embodiment, the mobile application server 508 may be a customerinteraction gateway. The customer interaction gateway may optionally belocated behind a Firewall and a Network Address Translation (NAT)device. The customer interaction gateway may interact with the userequipment 502 in order to pass and receive information. The customerinteraction gateway may push various types of information to the userequipment, such as information relating to rating plans, balanceinformation, loyalty information, subscriber policies and subscriberprofile information. The customer interaction gateway may alsocommunicate with the other elements in the operator's core such as thepolicy management system (e.g. PCRF in a 3GPP network), a charging,rating and balance management system (e.g. an OCS or OFCS in a 3GPPnetwork), a subscriber repository (e.g. an SPR or UDR in a 3GPParchitecture), or a loyalty management system. The customer interactiongateway may also be configured to perform management operations tofilter the information going to/from the user equipment 502. Forexample, if the customer interaction gateway sends a message thatenables a subscriber to purchase an additional service (such as abandwidth boost), the customer interaction gateway may be configured toblock sending messages offering services previously offered to thesubscriber (e.g., in the past 24 hours).

In an embodiment, the mobile application server 508 may be configured sothat the interfaces between the mobile application server 508 and userequipment 502 are stateless (enabling extremely fast and scalablecommunications) and so that the interfaces between the mobileapplication server 508 and other components in the telecommunicationsoperator's network (e.g., charging system 532) are stateful (enablingthe components to maintain active sessions for prolonged periods oftime).

FIG. 6 illustrates logical components, information flows and interfacesin a communication system 600 including both stateless and statefulinterfaces in accordance with an embodiment. Specifically, FIG. 6illustrates that the communication system 600 may include a plurality ofuser equipment devices 502, each of which may communicate with one ormore of a plurality of mobile application servers 508 via one or morestateless interfaces 602. The mobile application server 508 maycommunicate with a single sign on (SSO) system component 526, an AAAsystem component 528, a policy management system component 530, and acharging system component 532 and the other internal components withinthe telecommunications operator's network via stateful interfaces 604that enable the component to maintain active sessions for prolongedperiods of time.

FIG. 7 illustrates logical components, information flows and interfacesin an embodiment communication system 700 in which communicationsbetween mobile application servers and policy and charging componentsare facilitated by a dynamic context router (DCR) 702. The communicationsystem 700 may include a plurality of user equipment devices 502, eachof which may communicate with a mobile application server 508. Themobile application server 508 may communicate with multiple policymanagement system components 530 and multiple charging system components532 via a dynamic context router (DCR). The dynamic context router 702is a flexible, protocol agnostic, application-level router and loadbalancer that may be used to manage communications between variousinstances of various components (e.g., charging system 532, etc.) in thesystem 700 to ensure that the correct messages are sent to the correctinstances. Additional details of the dynamic context router 702 may befound in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/309,008 filed Dec. 1, 2011,titled “Methods, Systems and Devices for Dynamic Context-Based Routing,”the entire contents of which are incorporated by reference.

Briefly, the dynamic context router 702 may be an extension of adiameter routing agent (DRA) defined by the 3GPP standards (e.g.,provide the functionality attributed to a DRA), but configured toperform operations for implementing many features and functions notprovided by a DRA. For example, the dynamic context router 702 mayidentify communication partners and/or determine resource availability,determining the identity and availability of communication partners foran application requesting a communication session, make routing andload-balancing decisions dynamically based on the context and content ofthe information being communicated, look inside the messages beingcommunicated and make intelligent decisions based on the content of themessages, make calls to external systems requesting additionalinformation for a specific message being communicated, and many otheroperations.

Returning to FIG. 7, the mobile application server 508 may communicatewith the dynamic context router through one or more interfaces 704,which include a single proprietary interface or multiple standardizedinterfaces. The dynamic context router 702 may interface with multiplepolicy management systems 530 and multiple charging systems 532 usingmultiple standardized interfaces 706. In an embodiment, thecommunication system 700 may include multiple instances of the dynamiccontext router 702.

FIG. 8 illustrates logical components and example message flows in acommunication system 800 that includes a mobile application server 508in accordance with various embodiments. The illustrated communicationsystem 800 includes a user equipment component 502, a mobile applicationserver 508, a policy management system component 530, and a chargingsystem component 532. In block 810, a subscriber may interact with theclient software on his/her user equipment component 502. The userequipment 502 may send a request message 812 to the mobile applicationserver 508 for information (e.g., policy and/or charging information,etc.) regarding the subscriber.

In response to receiving a request message 812, the mobile applicationserver 508 may determine whether the required policy and/or charginginformation is available locally. If the mobile application server 508determines that the policy information required to fulfill the requestmessage 812 is not available locally, the mobile application server 508may send a request message 814 to the policy management system component530 requesting the required additional policy information, and thepolicy management system component 530 may send a response message 816that includes the requested policy information to the mobile applicationserver 508. Likewise, if the mobile application server 508 determinesthat the charging information required to fulfill the request message812 is not available locally, the mobile application server 508 may senda request message 818 to the charging system component 532 requestingadditional charging information, and the charging system component 532may send the mobile application server 508 a response message 820 thatincludes the requested charging information.

As mentioned above, above, the mobile application server 508 may haveall of the required charging information available locally due totechniques such as caching. If the mobile application server 508determines that the required policy and/or charging information isavailable locally (e.g., via caching or messages 816, 820), in block822, the mobile application server 508 may use the policy and/orcharging information to perform business logic operations specific tothe request and/or user equipment 502, and send the results of theoperations and/or the requested response 824 to the user equipment 502.In block 826, the user equipment 502 may analyze the receivedinformation and display the results to the subscriber.

The mobile application server 508 may be configured to support a numberof different use cases by, for example, retrieving and analyzingsubscriber, policy, and charging information and sending the results tothe user equipment. Use cases may include built-in use cases that areready for immediate consumption by the end user (e.g., the networksubscriber) and definable use cases that may be defined bytelecommunications operators as they are needed. A subscriber maycustomize the use cases by interacting with the mobile applicationserver 508 through a user interaction system (e.g., a graphical userinterface) on the user equipment 502. Examples of use cases that may besupported by the various embodiments include use cases relating topolicy, charging, harassment prevention, subscriber level restrictions,service level restrictions, account level restrictions, roamingcontrols, spending limits, notifications, roaming services, contentfiltering (e.g., parental control to prohibit certain types of contentunder certain conditions), uniform resource locator whitelists, uniformresource locator blacklists, modem detection (e.g., tethering), billshock prevention, domestic controls, international controls, fixedduration service passes, periodic passes (e.g., day pass, week pass,etc.), single or recurring use controls, prepaid subscriber accounts,postpaid user accounts, bandwidth controls, on demand services,real-time promotions, real-time discounts, network utilization, networkcongestion, personalized spending limits, notifications, rolling spendnotifications (e.g., 80%, 100%, 180%, 200%, etc.), thresholds, accountoverview, current spending, current balances, spending per service,status of bundles, service breakdowns, detailed billable records, totalamounts per classification, address book resolution, live usage,counting automatically started with first data session, loyalty,rewards, current subscription plans, alternative subscription plans,tiered services based on bandwidth and usage requirements, currentlyinstalled add-ons, available add-ons, fair usage and quota management,excesses charges, free services, etc.

In an embodiment, the mobile application server 508 may be configured tocommunicate with both a policy management system 530 and a chargingsystem 532 in order to automatically extract the use cases with whichthey have been configured, and then self provision itself with theinformation that supports the above-listed use cases. In an embodiment,the policy management system 530 and the charging system 532 may beconfigured to support the exporting of information supporting theabove-listed use cases in a semantically meaningful way by using ameta-data model to describe the policy rules, charging rules,dictionaries, tables, counters, and/or any other required information.

FIGS. 9-12 illustrate user equipment devices configured with userinteraction systems that provide a subscriber with access to informationregarding his/her usage, charging, policy, service, subscription,account information and/or any other information relating to any of theuse-cases listed above. The user interaction systems may communicatewith the mobile application server 508 and/or perform computations viaclient software installed on the user equipment. The user interactionsystems may access the charging system 532, the policy management system530, or other network components via the mobile application server 508.For example, a user interaction system may be configured to access anonline charging system (e.g., OCS 120) via the mobile application server508 to retrieve charging information that may be used in conjunctionwith other information (e.g., usage information available to the userequipment 502, etc.) to present the subscriber with more in-depthinformation or services (e.g., top 10 most expensive list, etc.). Theuser interaction system may also be configured to receive and displaynotifications (e.g., from a notification engine/server and/or the mobileapplication server) in the form of application information, widgetinformation, status indicators in a title bar, etc. The user interactionsystem may display the information in terms of data quantities, costs,allowances, percentages, etc.

FIG. 9 illustrates an interaction system 900 configured to provide asubscriber with access to information regarding his/her short messageservice (SMS) usage and set SMS usage thresholds in accordance with anembodiment. In this embodiment, the user equipment may be configured toaccess usage and threshold information via the mobile application server508, and present the information on the user interaction system 900 inan easy to understand format. The embodiment may further include varioususer interface icons that, when touched or actuated, cause the device tosend various types of information to the mobile application server 508,which may adjust the subscriber's information/settings accordingly.

FIG. 10 illustrates an interaction system 1000 configured to enableusers to set balance alerts and provide users access to informationregarding calls, roaming, data usage history, data usage allowance, andother similar information in accordance with another embodiment. In thisembodiment, the user equipment may be configured to access informationvia the mobile application server 508, and present the information onthe user interaction system 1000 in an easy to understand format. Theembodiment may further include various user interface icons that, whentouched or actuated, cause the device to send various types ofinformation to the mobile application server 508, which may adjust thesubscriber's information/settings accordingly.

FIG. 11 illustrates an interaction system 1100 configured to provideusers with live information regarding their usage and charging inaccordance with yet another embodiment. In this embodiment, the userequipment may be configured to access information via the mobileapplication server 508, and present the information on the userinteraction system 1100 in an easy to understand format. The embodimentmay further include various user interface icons that, when touched oractuated, cause the device to send various types of information to themobile application server 508, which may adjust the subscriber'sinformation/settings accordingly.

FIG. 12 illustrates an interaction system 1200 configured to provideusers with information regarding a current subscription plan, and torecommend other subscription plans that the system determines to be morecost effective for the subscriber. In this embodiment, the userequipment may be configured to access information via the mobileapplication server 508, and present the information on the userinteraction system 1200 in an easy to understand format. The embodimentmay further include various user interface icons that, when touched oractuated, cause the device to send various types of information to themobile application server 508, which may adjust the subscriber'sinformation/settings accordingly.

In addition to the user interaction systems 900, 1000, 1100, 1200illustrated in FIGS. 9-12, various embodiments may include other userinteraction systems configured to provide users with any of thefunctionalities associated with one or more of the above-mentioned usecases, or other functionalities associated with policies and/orcharging. In such embodiments, the user equipment may be configured toaccess information via the mobile application server 508, and presentthe information on the user interaction system in an easy to understandformat. These embodiments may further include various user interfaceicons that, when touched or actuated, cause the device to send varioustypes of information to the mobile application server 508, which mayadjust the subscriber's information/settings accordingly.

In an embodiment illustrated in FIG. 13, the user interaction system andthe mobile application server 508 may be configured to support a loyaltyrewards service. In this embodiment, the mobile application server 508may be configured to retrieve information from network components (e.g.,policy management system 530 and charging system 532), some of which maynot be readily accessible to the telecommunication service providers.The user interaction system may be configured to display information formanaging loyalty accounts (e.g., “points”), services (e.g., cashing inpoints), and information. For example, the user interaction system maybe configured to display existing loyalty/reward points, entitlementsbased on current points (e.g., flights, hotel breaks, cinema tickets,additional services, cash back, etc.), entitlements based on additionalpoints, and other similar information that is accessible through themobile application server 508. The user interaction system may displayan interface that allows the users to redeem rewards and/or donatepoints or entitlements to other users or a charity (e.g., as part of agood corporate citizenship program, etc.). The user interaction systemmay communicate with a loyalty server via the mobile application server508 to provide subscriber selection information that the loyalty servermay act on (e.g., to process a transaction using loyalty/reward points).The loyalty server may included as part of (or may communicate with)other loyalty systems (e.g., supermarket, airline, credit card, etc.).

In an embodiment illustrated in FIG. 14, the user interaction system andthe mobile application server 508 may be configured to support aharassment prevention service. In this embodiment, the user interactionsystem may be configured to prevent harassment on the user equipment 502by, for example, enabling users to restrict or block incoming harassmentcommunications from other users. The user interaction system may displayan input screen that enables users to input (e.g., via selection,keyboard input, etc.) a number they desire to block or restrict. Theuser interaction system may present an input screen that enables usersto input numbers, wildcards and/or other information for identifying agroup or category of phone numbers (e.g., any number that starts with1800, all unidentified numbers, any number not in a specified contactslist, etc.) that are to be blocked or restricted (e.g., allow calls fromsubscriber A, but not SMSs from subscriber A). The user interactionsystem may be configured so that numbers may be added via selection froman SMS inbox or a list of recent calls, which may be stored on a devicememory or on a server accessible to the mobile application server 508.In an embodiment, the user interaction system may be configured toidentify various communication details (e.g., time of call, duration ofcall, caller's number, content of the communication, etc.) and store theidentified details separately in a protected memory of the userequipment or on a server memory accessible to the mobile applicationserver 508 (e.g., a server within the core network) for safekeeping incase such details are needed (e.g., as evidence for legal proceedings)in the future.

In an embodiment illustrated in FIG. 15, the user interaction system andthe mobile application server 508 may be configured to support aparental/group controls service. In this embodiment, the userinteraction system may be configured to enable users to set and manageparental and/or group controls for selected user equipment 502 or agroup of user equipment 502. For example, the user interaction systemmay be configured to display an input screen that enables users to inputinformation for grouping users into a category (e.g., family,co-workers, employees, business contacts, users subscribing to a commonservice plan, etc.). The user interaction system may present users withoptions for sharing a common balance (e.g., 400 texts per month for allof the phones grouped into the family category), reallocating balances(e.g., for users subscribing to a common service plan), split billing(e.g. into a personal balance and a corporate balance), and othersimilar options for accessing and/or modifying information relating toparental or group controls via the mobile application server 508. Theuser interaction system may also enable users to restrict access toinformation or services (e.g., block streaming videos on employee phonesduring work hours), specify which services are allowed per account(e.g., charges for data consumed using YouTube® are not to be charged tothe corporate balance), filter content (e.g., block text messages thatinclude pictures or a category of pictures), establish white and blacklists, and perform other similar operations for restricting access toinformation or services. The user interaction system may present userswith options for restricting communications between certain groupmembers (e.g., coworker A may not send texts to coworker B during workhours) over which the subscriber has managerial control of subscriberaccounts. The user interaction system may enable a subscriber toredirect content (e.g., SMSs, emails that include profanity, etc.) sentto a first phone (e.g., son's phone) to a second phone (e.g., dad'sphone) or an external server or website. The user interaction system mayenable a subscriber of the second phone (e.g., dad's phone) to receiveand approve redirected content, in which case the content may bedelivered to the first phone via the mobile application server 508.

In an embodiment illustrated in FIG. 16, the user interaction system andthe mobile application server 508 may be configured to support a “liveusage” service that enables users to monitor and manage live usage oftelecommunication and/or IP services. The user interaction system maydisplay one or more subscriber-configurable live counters (e.g.,counters for bandwidth, network speed, consumption costs, spendvelocity, etc.), which may include controls that enable users to start,stop, pause, and reset the live counters. The user interaction systemmay display detailed billable records and/or enable users to tag costs.For example, the user interaction system may display an input screenthat enables users to tag a specific telephone call as “work,” andcommunicate with the mobile application server 508 to transfer costs (orcost information) associated with the identified call to a differentaccount or billing category. The user interaction system may retrieve(via the mobile application server 508) and display a “Top 10” mostexpensive list identifying the ten most expensive calls or servicesconsumed over a subscriber-selectable period (e.g., day, month, year,etc.).

In an embodiment illustrated in FIG. 17, the user interaction system andthe mobile application server 508 may be configured to support a“predicted usage” service in which future usage and costs may bepredicted and displayed on an electronic display of the user equipment502. The user interaction system may compute (e.g., via client softwareof the user equipment 502 or the mobile application server 508)predicted usage and/or cost information based on current and/or pastusage information. The displayed information may be modeled on usage“velocity” and/or “acceleration,” and the time periods associated withthe displayed information may be subscriber-selectable and/orconfigurable (e.g., per second, minute, day, week, month, year, billingperiod, etc.). Current, past, and predicted future usage and costinformation may be retrieved by the user equipment from the mobileapplication server 508.

In an embodiment illustrated in FIG. 18, the user interaction system andthe mobile application server 508 may be configured to support a“threshold notification” service. In this embodiment, the userinteraction system may be configured to display usage thresholdinformation and notify the users when the thresholds are breached. Theuser interaction system may display an input screen that enables usersto set thresholds, and communicate with the mobile application server508 to set the thresholds and/or request to receive notifications fromthe notification server 524 when a set threshold is crossed. Thethreshold information may relate to mandatory thresholds (e.g.,thresholds set by the network operator) or arbitrary thresholds set orpersonalized by a subscriber. Received notifications may be added to acalendar application accessible to the user equipment 502 (e.g., via theuser equipment software or the mobile application server 508).Thresholds set by the mobile application server 508 may trigger newpolicies to be enforced in a policy management system 530. Thenotifications and thresholds may be based on contextual information(e.g., a subscriber's daily thresholds may be significantly lower if thesubscriber is roaming).

In an embodiment illustrated in FIG. 19, the user interaction system andthe mobile application server 508 may be configured to support a“connectivity pass” service that enables users to purchaseconnectivity/services as they are required without establishing a longterm relationship with the network operator, which may be achieved bythe user equipment connecting to the telecommunications network throughthe mobile application server 508. The mobile application server 508 maybe configured to enable third party providers to provide access tosponsored content for a reduced fee or for free. For example, a company(e.g., Apple®) may register with the mobile application server 508 toenable selected user equipment to access a site or service (e.g., Apple®App Store) through the mobile application server 508 at no cost to thesubscriber. The user interaction system may display an input screen thatenables users to purchase (via the mobile application server 508) aservice or connectivity that most suits the user's needs (e.g., voiceonly, SMS, Internet, etc.). The user interaction system may display aninput screen that enables users to pay for the connectivity directlyusing a credit card. Users may be presented with the option ofpurchasing connectivity passes having various predetermined durations(e.g., 24 hour pass, 7 days pass, 1 month pass, etc.). The userinteraction system may display an input screen that enables a user whois a pre-paid customer to top-up (increase) his/her balance or time onthe connectivity pass using his/her credit card or an external system(e.g., an online baking portal). The user interaction system may adddetails of the connectivity pass (e.g., start date, end date, etc.) to auser calendar.

In an embodiment illustrated in FIG. 20, the user interaction system andthe mobile application server 508 may be configured to support a servicepass purchase functionality that enables users to buy additionalservices. The user interaction system may display currently installedservice passes, available service passes and self-provision servicepasses. The mobile application server 508 may send the user interactionsystem targeted service passes, which may be targeted to the subscriberbased on his/her previous or current actions and/or based on contextualinformation. For example, a subscriber having exceeded a 90% thresholdfor a service may be offered a service pass that doubles the previousallowance for that service. As another example, a subscriber who isroaming may be offered a roaming-related service pass. As yet anotherexample, the services may be targeted to a subscriber based on similargroups or categories of users (e.g., same age, gender, monthly spendinghabits, services, etc.) purchasing the same service passes. The userinteraction system may add details of the service pass (e.g., startdate, end date, etc.) to a user calendar.

In an embodiment, the user interaction system and the mobile applicationserver 508 may be configured to support a quality of service (QoS)testing service or capability that enables subscribers to self-test acurrent level of quality of service on their user equipment. The userinteraction system may be configured to display an input screendisplaying a “Test QoS Now” button or icon that, when touched oractuated, causes the user equipment 502 to send various types ofinformation to the mobile application server 508, which may measurevarious QoS parameters (e.g., uplink, downlink, bandwidth, jitter, etc.)and report the measured information back to the user equipment. Themobile application server 508 may instruct the policy management system530 to temporarily block all other traffic to ensure an accurate test.The mobile application server 508 may instruct the charging system 532to “zero rate” the test traffic. The mobile application server 508 maygenerate data and send the generated data to the client software or userequipment. Likewise, the client software or user equipment may alsogenerate data and send the generated data to the mobile applicationserver 508 to disable all other services and cause all of the data to becreated and terminated within the same network, thereby improving theaccuracy of the test (unlike Internet based tests that are dependent onother networks). The mobile application server 508 may send the resultsof the test to the user equipment 502, which may receive and store thetest results, compare the received test results with previous testresults and/or expected results. The user interaction system may displaythe test results on an electronic display of the user equipment.

In an embodiment, the user interaction system and the mobile applicationserver 508 may be configured to support a “dynamic pricing” service orfunctionality that enables the network operator to vary the pricing ofservices based on network activity. The mobile application server 508may generate and send the user interaction system targeted dynamicallypriced offers in the form of service passes and/or notifications (e.g.,via the notification engine 524), and the user interaction system maynotify the subscriber of the availability of a dynamic pricing offer.The mobile application server 508 may generate the targeted dynamicallypriced offers based on the subscriber's preferences, which may bespecified via the user interaction system (e.g., via selection of an “Ialways want to be notified of dynamic pricing offers” option). Themobile application server 508 may be configured to increase pricingduring times of high volume traffic or network congestion to discourageusage. The mobile application server 508 may also be configured togenerate dynamically priced offers to discourage usage. For example, themobile application server 508 may access the policy management system530 to detect that a subscriber is trying to access a service (e.g.,video-on-demand service) during peak hours, and generate a dynamicallypriced offer that includes a free hour of access if the subscriberdelays accessing the service until after peak hours. The mobileapplication server 508 may also generate dynamically priced offers basedon perishable services and/or underutilized resources. For example, themobile application server 508 may generate a dynamically priced offerthat allows a subscriber to access a service (e.g., video-on-demandservice) for a fraction of the normal price if he/she does so duringoff-peak hours, in certain geographical areas, during a particular timeof day, week, etc.

In an embodiment illustrated in FIG. 21, the user interaction system andthe mobile application server 508 may be configured to support apersonalized service plan option that enables a subscriber to determinehow the monthly subscription will be divided between different services.The user interaction system may display details of a subscriber'scurrent plan and enable the subscriber to tailor the allocation betweenservices (e.g., voice, SMS, Internet, etc.). The user interaction systemmay further enable the subscriber to tailor the allocation betweenapplication level and/or Internet services, such as email, web browsing,video-on-demand, etc. The user interaction system may enable thesubscriber to change the allocation at any time during the month afterviewing his/her live usage information. The user interaction system maysend information relating to the subscriber's selections and/orallocations to the mobile application server 508 for implementation.

In an embodiment, the user interaction system and the mobile applicationserver 508 may be configured to support a context based promotionservice that enables a subscriber to receive promotions based on acontext relating to the subscriber. The mobile application server 508may enable third parties to submit context-based promotions for use witha network operator/service provider. The context-based promotions mayrelate to a location (e.g., enter a promotional code at the airport toget 5 free SMS messages at your destination, scan a barcode on the wayinto a concert to get 10 free photo uploads, etc.). The mobileapplication server 508 may also enable network operators/serviceproviders to submit context-based promotions for use with a third party(e.g., eTicket that enables free entry to a museum, etc.).

In an embodiment, the user interaction system and the mobile applicationserver 508 may be configured to support a “live advice of charge”service that enables a subscriber to determine the charge associatedwith a specific service under specific circumstances before he/sheconsumes the service. The user interaction system may display an inputscreen that enables users to enter “what-if” scenarios (e.g., How muchwill it cost me if I make a 10 minute call to a Canadian landline rightnow?, How much will it cost me if I watch a 90 minute film online now?,etc.). The user interaction system may send information relating to thesubscriber's selections and/or allocations to the mobile applicationserver 508 for analysis, and display the results of the analysis on anelectronic display of the user equipment. The user interaction systemmay enable users to enter “what-if” scenarios that account for context,time of day, location (roaming or not), network access type, etc.

In an embodiment illustrated in FIG. 22, the user interaction system andthe mobile application server 508 may be configured to support asubscription optimization service that enables the mobile applicationserver 508 server to access information relating to a subscriber'scurrent and past usage, and determine whether the subscriber is on themost cost effective plan. The mobile application server 508 may obtainsuch information from, for example, the charging system 532. The userinteraction system may display an input screen that enables users tospecify the historic time period to examine so as to only considertypical usage, which may be specified in days, weeks, months, etc. Themobile application server 508 may analyze how much the subscriber wouldhave saved if he/she had changed his/her subscription at some point inthe past, and send the computed information to the user equipment to bedisplayed. The mobile application server 508 may perform this analysisitself and notify users if they should consider changing subscription.The user interaction system may display an input screen that enablesusers to enter “what-if” scenarios (e.g., what is the most costeffective subscription if I increase my data downloads to 10 GB permonth?), and the inputted information may be sent to the mobileapplication server 508 for processing/analysis.

In an embodiment, the user interaction system and the mobile applicationserver 508 may be configured to support a personalized news service thatenables network operators/service providers to send personalized news tothe user equipment. The mobile application server 508 may be configuredto enable network providers to specify a news item or a category of newsitems that are to be sent to the user equipment. The registered newsitems may relate to new services that might be of interest to thesubscriber, sponsorship of events that are likely to be of interest tothe subscriber, or news not related to the network operator. The mobileapplication server 508 may be configured to locate and send theregistered news items to selected user equipment. The user equipment mayreceive and display the news item on an electronic display via the userinteraction system.

In an embodiment, the user interaction system and the mobile applicationserver 508 may be configured to support a subscriber surveyfunctionality that enables the network operator to push surveys to thesubscriber. The mobile application server 508 may be configured tocollect or generate surveys and/or enable third parties to registersurveys that are to be sent to the user equipment. Surveys may be ageneral, for which the subscriber was chosen randomly (e.g., “which ofthe following five services would you most like us to introduce next?”)or directly related to an action of the subscriber (e.g., “we noticedthat you have made 4 calls to the same number in the last 60 seconds.What was the problem? (a) I could not hear the other person (b) theother person could not hear me,” etc.). The user interaction system maybe configured to display rewards offered for completing a subscribersurvey.

In an embodiment, the user interaction system and the mobile applicationserver 508 may be configured to support a “customer support” servicethat enables users to manage support tickets on the user equipment.Support ticket management may include creating a ticket, monitoring thestatus of a ticket, updating a ticket, requesting a call from arepresentative of the network operator, etc.

In an embodiment illustrated in FIG. 23, the user interaction system andthe mobile application server 508 may be configured to support an“application based usage information” service that enables users to viewusage information for each application or service. The user interactionsystem may display an input screen that enables users to select a timeperiod for the usage information (e.g., per minute, hour, day, week,month, billing period, etc.). The displayed usage information mayinclude usage caused by operating system and/or application updates. Theapplication detection may be done on the user equipment 502.

In an embodiment illustrated in FIG. 24, the user interaction system andthe mobile application server 508 may be configured to support an“application based policy” service that enables users to set policiesfor each application. The policies may relate to thresholds andnotifications, provide the ability to play, pause, and stopapplications, may relate to the access network type, may provide theability to apply thresholds and notifications, etc. The user interactionsystem may display an input screen that enables users to select a timeperiod in which the policies are to be enforced. The user interactionsystem may display visual indicators to indicate the percentage of aquota that has been consumed (e.g., an empty to full bucket, green tored color change, etc.). Some policies may be mandatory and set by thenetwork operator, others may be subscriber specified policies.

In an embodiment, the user interaction system and the mobile applicationserver 508 may be configured to support an “application based charging”service that enables users to view charging information for eachapplication. The user interaction system may display charginginformation (retrieved via the mobile application server 508) for eachapplication.

In an embodiment illustrated in FIG. 25, the user interaction system andthe mobile application server 508 may be configured to support an“access network aware policies” service that enables a clientapplication to apply different policies to the user equipment 502depending on the type of access network (e.g., 3G, 4G, WiFi, etc.). Themobile application server 508 may communicate with a policy managementsystem 530 in order to obtain these policies. Policies may be specifiedin terms of high-level goals (e.g., “I want the cheapest service,” “Iwant the best service,” “I want the most secure service,” etc.).Policies may also be specified in terms of the access network type, orin terms of the services.

In an embodiment, the user interaction system and the mobile applicationserver 508 may be configured to support a network wide aggregationfunctionality that enables a network operator to determine the effectsof specific actions on groups of users. For example, the mobileapplication server 508 may be configured to compute costs associatedwith a group of users receiving the latest update to their userequipment 502 operating systems, and send such information to thenetwork operator and/or user equipment. An action may be a system-wideevent, and the groups may be chosen randomly.

In various embodiments, the mobile application server 508 may enableusers to directly interact with their live charging information within atelecommunications network. The mobile application server 508 mayreceive a charging request from user equipment 502, identify a relevantcharging system, and send a charging request to the identified chargingsystem. The charging system may receive and process the chargingrequest, and send the results of the processing back to the mobileapplication server 508. The mobile application server 508 may receive aresponse from the charging system, process the received response, andsend the results of the processing to the user equipment 502. Thecharging request may be generated on an application running on the userequipment, and may relate to all charging information, includingcharging information associated with a specific subscriber, charginginformation associated with a subscriber defined counter, charginginformation associated with a specific service for a specificsubscriber, charging information relating to services that are nottelecommunications related, charging information associated withspecific devices belonging to a specific subscriber. The chargingrequests may be requests to view charging information, increment acharging balance, decrement a charging balance, or modify charginginformation. Charging requests may relate to balance or spending ratethresholds being set.

The mobile application server 508 may be configured to sendnotifications when charging thresholds are breached. The mobileapplication server 508 may identify a relevant charging system based oninformation from a subscriber repository, availability and/orredundancy. The charging system may be one of an online charging system(OCS) or an offline charging system (OFCS) as defined by 3GPP.

The mobile application server 508 may be configured to predict futurecharging spending balances and rates based on current spending amountsand rates. This may be achieved on an aggregate basis, or on aper-service basis. Charging requests may enable a subscriber to obtainnetwork connectivity without having a prior commercial relationship,additional telecommunications services, personalized subscription plans,non-telecommunications services (e.g., mCommerce, etc.).

The mobile application server 508 may be configured to enable thetelecommunications services to be priced and purchased dynamically,allow for under-utilization and perishable services, and allow forover-utilization (e.g., congestion).

The mobile application server 508 may be configured to provide thesubscriber with “advice of charge” information. The mobile applicationserver 508 may provide the subscriber with the optimal subscription planand additional services based on the subscriber's previous usage andspending. The charging information may relate to other interdependentinformation such as loyalty points.

The mobile application server 508 may be configured to operate inreal-time, support multiple client types (including web applicationservers), provide functionality specific to a particular type of userequipment 502, and support an extremely high number of transactions.

The mobile application server 508 may include published integrationpoints that offer a very low barrier to integration. These publishedintegration points may use simple and widely adopted protocols andformats such as SOAP, HTTP, and JSON. The system may enable userequipment 502 to obtain information from the mobile application server508, either via using a pull model in which the information is requestedby the user equipment 502, or via a push model in which the mobileapplication server 508 pushes the information to the user equipment 502.The information may be obtained on-demand or preemptively during periodsof inactivity (of the user equipment 502 or of the telecommunicationsoperator's network).

The mobile application server 508 may simplify the integration of clientsoftware on user equipment 502 by hiding stateful information. Themobile application server 508 may include security managementfunctionality that protects the telecommunications operator'sinfrastructure from harmful, malicious, or fraudulent activity. Themobile application server 508 security features may include genericsecurity features such as Network Address Translation (NAT), and/orapplication and context specific security features (e.g., applicationlevel firewalls, reverse proxy servers, etc.). The mobile applicationserver 508 may provide front-end load balancing and routing for theclient software on the user equipment 502. The mobile application server508 may be deployed into a cloud environment. The mobile applicationserver 508 may provide back-end load balancing and routing for thetelecommunications operator's business and operating systems'infrastructure. The mobile application server 508 may use caching toimprove performance. The caching may be based on customized cachingalgorithms that are application and context aware. The improvedperformance due to caching may be used to reduce the load on thetelecommunications operator's business and operating systems' back-endinfrastructure.

The mobile application server 508 may include a decision core engineconfigured to provide run-time adaptability and extensibility bysupporting the addition, removal, and modification of business logic inreal-time. These changes in business logic may occur at run-time, whilethe mobile application server 508 is online and in-service.

The mobile application server 508 may be configured to be context aware.The contextual awareness may relate to users and their usage, traffic,and spending patterns. The contextual awareness may relate to historicalinformation, current information, and future predictive information.

The mobile application server 508 may generate contextual informationvia an analytics engine. The mobile application server 508 may useindustry standard practices to improve reliability and performance. Thismay include the use of redundancy, clustering, and caching. The mobileapplication server 508 may use built-in standards based identificationand authentication modules, such as RFC4005, HSS Diameter modules, andRADIUS AAA modules.

The mobile application server 508 may contain built-in securityfeatures, ensure data remains confidential, ensure access control modelsare implemented, and/or ensure users cannot access confidentialinformation within the telecommunications operator's network. Thisconfidential information may include private metadata relating to theuse cases.

The mobile application server 508 may include functionality toimmediately disable client software running on user equipment 502 thathas been compromised or stolen. The mobile application server 508 mayuse behavioral heuristics to determine if user equipment 502 has beencompromised or stolen. The mobile application server 508 may beconfigured with the identities of user equipment 502 that have beencompromised or stolen. This configuration may be either set by the usersand/or the telecommunications operator.

The mobile application server 508 may include built-in support forcharging functionality. This charging functionality may be based onstandard-based charging protocols, such as RFC3588, RFC4006, Rf, Ro,RADIUS Accounting, Diameter Accounting, and CAMEL.

The mobile application server 508 may be tightly integrated with apolicy management system 530 (e.g., a PCRF). The mobile applicationserver 508 may be tightly integrated with a charging system 532 (e.g.,an OCS). The mobile application server 508 may be tightly integratedwith a dynamic context router. The dynamic context router 702 mayinclude a diameter routing agent (DRA).

The mobile application server 508 may be integrated with standard userequipment 502 applications. The mobile application server 508 may beintegrated with the address book, calendar, etc. The mobile applicationserver 508 may allow the easy integration of information from the mobileapplication server 508 with other sources. These other sources couldinclude Web 2.0 sources such as Facebook®, Twitter®, Skype®, etc. Theseother sources may include policy and charging information.

The mobile application server 508 may use resource utilizationinformation from the policy management system 530, in conjunction withrating information from the charging system, in order to advertisedynamically priced offers and perishable services to the subscriber viathe software client. Further, the subscriber may purchase thesedynamically priced offers and perishable services.

In an embodiment, the mobile application server 508 may enable users tocreate and adjust personalized subscription plans. These subscriptionplans may be based on changing individual service usage allowances, orindividual constituent costs, while maintaining a constant subscriptioncost. These subscriptions may be based on contextual information, suchas receiving discounted rates for usage within a subscriber-definedgeographic area. The mobile application server 508 may provide topologyhiding to the user equipment 502. This may prevent the discovery ofnetwork addresses.

The mobile application server 508 may provide QoS management. This QoSmanagement may be controlled by the subscriber. This QoS management maybe set mandatorily by the telecommunications operator.

The mobile application server 508 may support the promotion anddistribution of offers and servers targeted directly at users who areroaming. The mobile application server 508 may enable users to manageadditional devices associated with the telecommunications operator.These additional devices may include broadband routers and Femtocells.

The mobile application server 508 may enable users to apply discount andpromotional offers that are available in their environs. These offersmay be in the form of unique numbers that are manually input into theuser equipment 502 by the subscriber. These offers may be in the form of1D or 2D barcodes that are captured using a camera of the user equipment502. These offers may be in the form of signals that are broadcast usinga wireless technology such as Near Field Communications (NFC),Bluetooth, or WiFi.

The mobile application server 508 may provide the subscriber withcontextual information. This contextual information may be displayed onuser equipment 502 using graphics or text. This contextual informationmay also be rendered as audio. This contextual information may relate tolocation information, such as locating the nearest phone credit top-uplocation or Wi-Fi hotspot.

The mobile application server 508 may enable users to obtain real-timeAdvice-of-Charge (AoC) information. Users may set thresholds and alertsbased on this AoC information. The mobile application server 508 maymake recommendations to users regarding their charges. Theserecommendations may be based on changing the subscription plan. Theserecommendations may be based on adding service bundles.

FIGS. 26-28 illustrate user equipment devices in the form of televisionsconfigured with user interaction systems that provide a subscriber withaccess to information regarding his/her telecommunications serviceusage, charging, policy, service plans, subscription, accountinformation and/or any other information relating to any of theuse-cases listed above. The user interaction systems on network-enabledtelevisions may communicate with the mobile application server 508,perform computations via client software installed on the userequipment, access the charging system 532, the policy management system530, or other network components via the mobile application server 508,and perform any and all of the operations discussed above.

FIG. 26 illustrates an interaction system on network-enabled televisionconfigured to provide a subscriber with access to information regardinghis/her short message service (SMS) usage, data usage, multimediamessage service (MMS) usage, voice usage, and other information inaccordance with an embodiment. In this embodiment, the user equipmentmay be configured to access usage, policy, and charging information viathe mobile application server 508, and present the information on theuser interaction system in an easy to understand format. The embodimentmay further include various user interface icons and/or buttons that,when touched or actuated, cause the device to send various types ofinformation to the mobile application server 508, which may adjust thesubscriber's information/settings accordingly.

FIG. 27 illustrates an interaction system on network-enabled televisionconfigured to provide a subscriber with access to information regardinghis/her data plan, data usage, and subscription packages. In thisembodiment, the user equipment may be configured to access usage plan,subscription, policy, and charging information via the mobileapplication server 508, and present the information on the userinteraction system in an easy to understand format. The embodiment mayfurther include various user interface icons and/or buttons that, whentouched or actuated, cause the device to send various types ofinformation to the mobile application server 508, which may adjust thesubscriber's information/settings accordingly.

FIG. 28 illustrates an interaction system on network-enabled televisionconfigured to provide a subscriber with access managing accounts andservices. In this embodiment, the user equipment may be configured toaccess policy and charging information via the mobile application server508, and present the information on the user interaction system in aneasy to understand format. The embodiment may further include varioususer interface icons and/or buttons that, when touched or actuated,cause the device to send various types of information to the mobileapplication server 508, which may adjust the subscriber'sinformation/settings accordingly.

FIG. 29 is a system block diagram of a user equipment device in the formof a phone/cell phone suitable for use with various embodiments. A cellphone 2900 may include a processor 2901 coupled to internal memory 2902,a display 2904, and to a speaker 2906. Additionally, the cell phone 2900may include an antenna 2908 for sending and receiving electromagneticradiation that may be connected to a wireless data link and/or cellulartelephone transceiver 2910 coupled to the processor 2901. Cell phones2900 typically also include menu selection buttons 2912 or switches forreceiving subscriber inputs.

The various embodiments may be implemented on any of a variety ofcomputing devices, including commercially available servers, such as theserver 3000 illustrated in FIG. 30. Such a server 3000 typicallyincludes a processor 3001 coupled to volatile memory 3002 and a largecapacity nonvolatile memory, such as a disk drive 3003. The server 3000may also include a floppy disc drive, compact disc (CD) or DVD discdrive 3006 coupled to the processor 3001. The server 3000 may alsoinclude network access ports 3004 coupled to the processor 3001 forestablishing data connections with a network 3005, such as a local areanetwork coupled to other operator network computers and servers.

The processors 2901, 3001 may be any programmable microprocessor,microcomputer or multiple processor chip or chips that can be configuredby software instructions (applications) to perform a variety offunctions, including the functions of the various embodiments describedbelow. Multiple processors 2901, 3001 may be provided, such as oneprocessor dedicated to wireless communication functions and oneprocessor dedicated to running other applications. Typically, softwareapplications may be stored in the internal memory 2902, 3002, 3003before they are accessed and loaded into the processor 2901, 3001. Theprocessor 2901, 3001 may include internal memory sufficient to store theapplication software instructions.

The foregoing method descriptions and the process flow diagrams areprovided merely as illustrative examples and are not intended to requireor imply that the steps of the various embodiments must be performed inthe order presented. As will be appreciated by one of skill in the artthe order of steps in the foregoing embodiments may be performed in anyorder. Words such as “thereafter,” “then,” “next,” etc. Are not intendedto limit the order of the steps; these words are simply used to guidethe reader through the description of the methods. Further, anyreference to claim elements in the singular, for example, using thearticles “a,” “an” or “the” is not to be construed as limiting theelement to the singular.

The various illustrative logical blocks, modules, circuits, andalgorithm steps described in connection with the embodiments disclosedherein may be implemented as electronic hardware, computer software, orcombinations of both. To clearly illustrate this interchangeability ofhardware and software, various illustrative components, blocks, modules,circuits, and steps have been described above generally in terms oftheir functionality. Whether such functionality is implemented ashardware or software depends upon the particular application and designconstraints imposed on the overall system. Skilled artisans mayimplement the described functionality in varying ways for eachparticular application, but such implementation decisions should not beinterpreted as causing a departure from the scope of the presentinvention.

The hardware used to implement the various illustrative logics, logicalblocks, modules, and circuits described in connection with theembodiments disclosed herein may be implemented or performed with ageneral purpose processor, a digital signal processor (DSP), anapplication specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field programmablegate array (FPGA) or other programmable logic device, discrete gate ortransistor logic, discrete hardware components, or any combinationthereof designed to perform the functions described herein. Ageneral-purpose processor may be a microprocessor, but, in thealternative, the processor may be any conventional processor,controller, microcontroller, or state machine A processor may also beimplemented as a combination of computing devices, e.g., a combinationof a DSP and a microprocessor, a plurality of microprocessors, one ormore microprocessors in conjunction with a DSP core, or any other suchconfiguration. Alternatively, some steps or methods may be performed bycircuitry that is specific to a given function.

In one or more exemplary embodiments, the functions described may beimplemented in hardware, software, firmware, or any combination thereof.If implemented in software, the functions may be stored on ortransmitted over as one or more instructions or code on acomputer-readable medium. The steps of a method or algorithm disclosedherein may be embodied in a processor-executable software moduleexecuted which may reside on a tangible non-transitory computer-readablemedium or processor-readable medium. Non-transitory computer-readableand processor-readable media may be any available media that may beaccessed by a computer or processor. By way of example, and notlimitation, such non-transitory computer-readable media may compriseRAM, ROM, EEPROM, CD-ROM or other optical disk storage, magnetic diskstorage or other magnetic storage devices, or any other medium that maybe used to carry or store desired program code in the form ofinstructions or data structures and that may be accessed by a computer.Disk and disc, as used herein, includes compact disc (CD), laser disc,optical disc, digital versatile disc (DVD), floppy disk, and blu-raydisc where disks usually reproduce data magnetically, while discsreproduce data optically with lasers. Combinations of the above shouldalso be included within the scope of computer-readable media.Additionally, the operations of a method or algorithm may reside as oneor any combination or set of codes and/or instructions on anon-transitory processor-readable medium and/or computer-readablemedium, which may be incorporated into a computer program product.

The preceding description of the disclosed embodiments is provided toenable any person skilled in the art to make or use the presentinvention. Various modifications to these embodiments will be readilyapparent to those skilled in the art, and the generic principles definedherein may be applied to other embodiments without departing from thescope of the invention. Thus, the present invention is not intended tobe limited to the embodiments shown herein but is to be accorded thewidest scope consistent with the principles and novel features disclosedherein.

1-20. (canceled)
 21. A method of accessing information in atelecommunications network, comprising: receiving in a server device arequest message from a user equipment device; identifying a chargingsystem and a policy management system based on information included inthe received request message; sending a charging request message to theidentified charging system and a policy request message to theidentified policy management system; receiving in the server device acharging response message from the identified charging system and apolicy response message from the identified policy management system;generating a response message based on information included in thereceived charging response message and information included in thereceived policy response message; and sending the generated responsemessage to the user equipment device.
 22. The method of claim 21,wherein receiving the request message from the user equipment devicecomprises receiving a communication message that includes at least oneof: charging information; loyalty information; information for obtainingnetwork connectivity information; and information for transferring costinformation from a first billing category to a second billing category.23. The method of claim 21, wherein sending the charging request messageto the identified charging system comprises sending a communicationmessage that instructs the identified charging system to modify charginginformation.
 24. The method of claim 21, further comprising: setting athreshold based on the information included in the received requestmessage; and sending a notification message to the user equipment devicein response to determining that the threshold is breached.
 25. Themethod of claim 21, wherein identifying the charging system comprises:receiving information from subscriber repository; determining a chargingsystem type based on the information received from subscriberrepository; and identifying one of an online charging system (OCS) andan offline charging system (OFCS) based on the charging system type. 26.The method of claim 21, wherein generating the response message based oninformation included in the received charging response message andinformation included in the received policy response message comprisesgenerating a communication message that includes at least one of:harassment prevention information; service level restrictioninformation; content filtering information; network utilizationinformation; user group information; dynamic pricing information; andparental control information.
 27. The method of claim 21, furthercomprising predicting one of a future balance and a future rate based onthe information included in the charging response message.
 28. A servercomputing device, comprising: a processor configured withprocessor-executable instructions to perform operations comprising:receiving a request message from a user equipment device; identifying acharging system and a policy management system based on informationincluded in the received request message; sending a charging requestmessage to the identified charging system and a policy request messageto the identified policy management system; receiving a chargingresponse message from the identified charging system and a policyresponse message from the identified policy management system;generating a response message based on information included in thereceived charging response message and information included in thereceived policy response message; and sending the generated responsemessage to the user equipment device.
 29. The server computing device ofclaim 28, wherein the processor is configured with processor-executableinstructions to perform operations such that receiving the requestmessage from the user equipment device comprises receiving acommunication message that includes at least one of: charginginformation; loyalty information; information for obtaining networkconnectivity information; and information for transferring costinformation from a first billing category to a second billing category.30. The server computing device of claim 28, wherein the processor isconfigured with processor-executable instructions to perform operationssuch that sending the charging request message to the identifiedcharging system comprises sending a communication message that instructsthe identified charging system to modify charging information.
 31. Theserver computing device of claim 28, wherein the processor is configuredwith processor-executable instructions to perform operations furthercomprising: setting a threshold based on the information included in thereceived request message; and sending a notification message to the userequipment device in response to determining that the threshold isbreached.
 32. The server computing device of claim 28, wherein theprocessor is configured with processor-executable instructions toperform operations such that identifying the charging system comprises:receiving information from subscriber repository; determining a chargingsystem type based on the information received from subscriberrepository; and identifying one of an online charging system (OCS) andan offline charging system (OFCS) based on the charging system type. 33.The server computing device of claim 28, wherein the processor isconfigured with processor-executable instructions to perform operationssuch that generating the response message based on information includedin the received charging response message and information included inthe received policy response message comprises generating acommunication message that includes at least one of: harassmentprevention information; service level restriction information; contentfiltering information; network utilization information; user groupinformation; dynamic pricing information; and parental controlinformation.
 34. The server computing device of claim 28, wherein theprocessor is configured with processor-executable instructions toperform operations further comprising predicting one of a future balanceand a future rate based on the information included in the chargingresponse message.
 35. A non-transitory computer readable storage mediumhaving stored thereon processor-executable software instructionsconfigured to cause a server processor to perform operations comprising:receiving a request message from a user equipment device; identifying acharging system and a policy management system based on informationincluded in the received request message; sending a charging requestmessage to the identified charging system and a policy request messageto the identified policy management system; receiving a chargingresponse message from the identified charging system and a policyresponse message from the identified policy management system;generating a response message based on information included in thereceived charging response message and information included in thereceived policy response message; and sending the generated responsemessage to the user equipment device.
 36. The non-transitory computerreadable storage medium of claim 35, wherein the storedprocessor-executable software instructions are configured to cause aserver processor to perform operations such that receiving the requestmessage from the user equipment device comprises receiving acommunication message that includes at least one of: charginginformation; loyalty information; information for obtaining networkconnectivity information; and information for transferring costinformation from a first billing category to a second billing category.37. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 35,wherein the stored processor-executable software instructions areconfigured to cause a server processor to perform operations such thatsending the charging request message to the identified charging systemcomprises sending a communication message that instructs the identifiedcharging system to modify charging information.
 38. The non-transitorycomputer readable storage medium of claim 35, wherein the storedprocessor-executable software instructions are configured to cause aserver processor to perform operations further comprising: setting athreshold based on the information included in the received requestmessage; and sending a notification message to the user equipment devicein response to determining that the threshold is breached.
 39. Thenon-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 35, wherein thestored processor-executable software instructions are configured tocause a server processor to perform operations such that identifying thecharging system comprises: receiving information from subscriberrepository; determining a charging system type based on the informationreceived from subscriber repository; and identifying one of an onlinecharging system (OCS) and an offline charging system (OFCS) based on thecharging system type.
 40. The non-transitory computer readable storagemedium of claim 35, wherein the stored processor-executable softwareinstructions are configured to cause a server processor to performoperations such that generating the response message based oninformation included in the received charging response message andinformation included in the received policy response message comprisesgenerating a communication message that includes at least one of:harassment prevention information; service level restrictioninformation; content filtering information; network utilizationinformation; user group information; dynamic pricing information; andparental control information.
 41. The non-transitory computer readablestorage medium of claim 35, wherein the stored processor-executablesoftware instructions are configured to cause a server processor toperform operations further comprising predicting one of a future balanceand a future rate based on the information included in the chargingresponse message.